Mindful Coloring
Getting creative is another great tool to add to your repertoire for healing. Do you remember coloring in-(or out)-side the lines when you were a child? The smell of the crayon as you unleashed its magic on the page and brought the images to life? The simple joy or calm it brought you?
Coloring allows us to focus on one task at a time and can therefore recenter us when we feel scrambled. It also allows us to control the narrative - we choose the color and where it lands. Even more fulfilling is that coloring can help us reconnect to our inner child, someone who may have gotten lost as a result of trauma. It may seem inconsequential, but these small achievements can improve how we cope with life.
Today, there is growing popularity and understanding of the benefits of mindful coloring as another creative outlet that can help us navigate life. Like other mindfulness activities, coloring can help regulate the amygdala in our brain, which manages emotional responses, including fear and anxiety.⁴⁴ And, while it requires us to focus, it does so in a way that liberates us from what may be weighing heavy on our minds at the time.⁴⁵ This is why you may see coloring books and tools in counseling offices, doctors offices, community centers, and other spaces meant to help you gain useful coping skills.
You can also buy a coloring book in the children’s section of your local bookstore (these can be a great way to connect to your childhood self and can remind you of fond memories). However, now there are a myriad of ways to obtain “adult” coloring materials. The same bookstore should have an adult coloring section, where you can purchase more complex coloring books. You can also purchase them from independent sellers on Etsy or other similar sites. A quick internet search will direct you to sites with free downloads, if you’re on a budget, but, for now, we offer you a sample coloring page here.
We invite you to return to this page when you feel overwhelmed and need a moment to focus on coloring. If you find that this is not helping you return to a state of calm, you can try another modality from this zine to ground yourself and return to this later. If you wish to continue, by all means, unleash the (child or adult) artist!
